If your a fan of old school Sonic from the Sega Genesis days then you have to pick up Sonic Mega Collection Plus. This is a sort of expanded edition of Sonic Mega Collection released for GC a few years ago. This oollection gives you Sonic games from the Game Gear which was Sega's only handheld released back in the early 1990's plus you get unlockable games like Comix Zone, The Ooze, Ristar, plus the following Sonic games: Sonic, Sonic 2, Sonic 3, Sonic and Knuckles, Sonic 3D Blast, Sonic Spinball, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, Knuckles in Sonic 2, Sonic 3 and Knuckles, and Blue Sphere, plus the following Gear Game games: Sonic, Sonic Spinball, Sonic Triple Trouble, Sonic and Knuckles, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine and Sonic Labyrinth.

but I immediately got drawn in to the whole drama and fun of the Sonic series. It's as easy to get into as I remember- but not easy!

when i first about a collection for the genesis Sonic games i was so excited since i grew up on these games its a must have for any old school gamer of just a Sonic fan in general

I got this because my kids got into sonic from tv and their friends... there are many different sonic games to choose from, varying in difficulty. My kids have enjoyed the games, its a benign game in terms of any violence for video games for kids. I also enjoyed playing some of the games, having played them myself 20 years ago.

First off: this is a collection of the Genesis and Game Gear Sonic games (minus Sonic CD, which is sorely missed). It's not going to be knocking your socks off with its graphics and music, and the only change that really impacts gameplay in the slightest is the ability to save anywhere (just as if you were using an emulator).

The games themselves are a mixed lot, but the primary attraction here is the four base Sonic games -- Sonic 1, Sonic 2, Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles -- which provide the kind of rip-snorting high-speed platforming action you just don't get outside of portables this generation. (Sonic Heroes is ample proof that not everything is better in 3-D.)

Unfortunately, some bonehead decided that most of the rest of the content should be locked -- on a COMPILATION! -- with ridiculous requirements. You don't unlock games by completing other games, or even by getting 100% completion in other games (Sonic 1 being one of the first games I recall that had a second, slightly different ending for getting 100%).

Nope. You unlock the remaining games by simply selecting the unlocked ones off the menu repeatedly. You don't even have to play them. Select the game off the menu, quit immediately, select it again, quit immediately, repeat 20-30 times. The slow-loading, overteched main menu intro screen makes this even more of a chore.

Maddeningly, one of the locked games is Sonic 3 and Knuckles. Once you had both games about the only reason to even CONSIDER playing Sonic 3 alone was to see the original ending out of nostalgia; the locked-on version makes the original otherwise obsolete.

If you can get past that, though, the original four Sonic games alone are worth the (LOW) price of the title. You also get Sonic Spinball and Sonic 3-D Blast, neither of which really worked for me; the former was too frustrating and random and the latter just plain boring. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine is just Puyo Pop, though, hey, free Puyo Pop. There are a few Game Gear titles and a couple of miscellaneous games.